People's assumptions are really funny. They see us artists out here with our various wares, toting our bags of choice full of said wares to venues and events, and automatically assume that because we have so much stuff for sale, we're rich. We got bank. The ends are more than meetin'; they're married. They see our mass emails, our please-support-my-products posts across all fifteen of the sites we're on (Facebook, Myspace, etc.), and they think, "Damn, he/she must have bank with all that product he/she's selling." And therein lies the operative word: SELLING. See, in order for us to have this "bank" that people assume we have, we would need to be SELLING our product on a regular basis. The problem is, unless you, the public, actually buy our work, there will, in most cases, and especially if product sales is an artist's mainstay, be no meeting of the ends.
Until I became a "struggling artist" myself, I believe that I, too, was guilty of such delusions. It's human nature. We see what we wanna see when we see what's in front of us. Trust me, that made perfect sense. And it was kinda profound. Basically, what I'm saying is, unless someone tells us what's really going on in the situations we're viewing, we naturally make our own judgments about what the story is. When it comes to artists and our products, the assumption is that we're automatically successful in our endeavors to garner sales, but, sadly, this is not always the case. Truth be told (and I told you I would tell it), it's damn hard being an otherwise-unknown artist whose main fan base is family and friends. And if I may be even more truthful, not all the family and friends buy our products, either. If that statement offended anyone, then maybe you're a "friend" or "family" that hasn't lent your full support to someone you know is struggling to make it. I invite you to ask yourself why, and answer honestly. Disregard that statement if you're in financial straits. If your artist friend or family member knows this, they should understand. I believe most artists hope their friends and family (who are financially able to do so) will buy all their products, whether the products interest them 100% or not, simply because it's them, and especially if they know how hard the person is working to get to their "big break." And, quiet (or maybe not so quiet) as it's kept, if I may be so bold as to speak for the majority, we value the opinions of our friends and family the most. Your seal of approval helps boost our confidence; it makes us feel like we just might be ready for the rest of the world to see or hear our creation.
If you're an artist whose money is tight, that means you have to find innovative ways to market yourself so people can find out about you and what you have to offer. This is even harder. Craigslist, Facebook, Myspace, and the other free sites will only get you so much recognition. In order to really make yourself known, you have to have the resources (read: money, money, and more money) to do it. Advertising on Google is very effective. The more you pay, the more pages you end up on in the search engine. In the world of advertisement, you really do get what you pay for.
But I digress. Sorry. Tangent. I'll work on that issue. I was talking about the delusions of the general public in regards to us artists who, like every other professional who is trying to feed and clothe themselves off what they do, want to be successful, too. We don't wanna have to resort to working a day job that we're not the least bit interested in simply because we aren't making enough at our real passion to support ourselves. It's bad enough having to work at a job that you don't like when you haven't found your path in life; it's a hundred times worse to have to do it when you know what it is you're here on earth to do, but you can't do it full time because you're not making more than $25.00 a week doing it. If that. You're in the depths of spiritual hell every day that you don't have the freedom to pursue your career of choice. And let me tell you, this misery makes us reeeeeaaallly difficult people to deal with, at times.
I've been having conversations with people lately about product sales. What I'm learning is that people really do need to be told, point blank, no holds barred, what we're experiencing in this journey of ours to "make it" in whatever part of the entertainment business we're in. They're genuinely surprised at how the creative industry functions, its many, many drawbacks, and that, contrary to their belief, our lives (and our bank accounts) are not always what they seem. We would love to say we can make it in the biz without your help, but, alas, we can't. There is no way an artist of any kind can advance without the public's support. If you don't go see our movies, watch our TV shows, rent our DVDs, buy our books, CDs, paintings, come to our events, or support our stores and businesses, we don't get paid, and then we're scrounging, begrudgingly, I might add, for some day job we don't even want, just so we can put food on the table. Do I understand that you're not gonna be interested in everybody's products? Of course. You can't possibly buy, or even want to buy, every artists works. But just because you're not into this-or-that thing that someone has, maybe you know someone who is, and if you pass the word along to them, maybe they will wanna partake. You never know what helping that artist gain that one sale will do for them. It may put gas in their car for the week; it may buy them enough to eat for a few days; it may allow them to pay a bill or two. When we ask you to "please pass the word along," we're asking because we understand that although you may have no interest in what we're offering, someone you know might. When we ask you to please leave reviews about our work, we ask because we need those reviews to help our sales (and, yes, because we really do wanna know what you thought of our work). Products for sale on sites that have no reviews are the ones that get skipped over because no one has taken the time to say it was good. If someone runs across a pile of positive reviews about a product, the natural instinct is to look further into it, maybe even buy it. I can't tell you how many times I've bought something I had no intention of even looking at, but, based on the reviews and comments, I felt inclined to see what I was missing. My point is, just as it takes a village to raise a child, it takes that same village to help an artist advance.
There was a time when I blamed the economy for our lack. "People are struggling; they can't afford to give up extra money to buy our ______." What I've seen with my own four eyes, yes, four, is that this is completely untrue. People buy what they wanna buy. Period. Economy schmonomy. People are still spending money on the things they really want, no matter what it is. They're buying clothes, jewelry, perfume and cologne, makeup, going out to eat, to concerts, sports events, the movies, buying select books and music, taking trips here and there, and even buying houses and cars. I'm telling you, I see it every day. It amazes me that people will actually tell me they haven't had time to buy my CD, when I know for a fact it only takes a few minutes to download or order it. Or they tell me they're gonna go to my site today and buy such-and-such, and then I get nothing but crickets; the purchase never takes place. Do they owe me that sale? Not at all. People are free to do whatever they like with their money. Just, please don't bullshit me with those kinds of responses. I'm a big girl. I like, can definitely handle, and really appreciate and prefer the truth. If you're not interested, say that (or some derivative of it). It might sting for a minute, but at least I'll know where you really stand. And I won't be mad at the truth. It's respectable, and it leads to clear understanding between people.
Is it all about the money for me? Absolutely not. I don't just wanna sell my products; I want people to buy them and feel they got more than their money's worth. I want people to be motivated, deeply and positively affected, educated, pleasantly surprised by what they got because maybe they just weren't expecting "all that." I want my work to help others advance in some way in their lives, even if it's miniscule. I want people to say, "Because of Charlene's ________, I'm inspired to__________." Or, "When I heard/read Charlene's ________, it helped me deal with_________." So, when I'm pushing for sales, it's not because I just wanna clean out people's wallets; it's because I feel confident that I have something people can benefit from, spiritually or otherwise, even if they think they can't because (A) they aren't open enough to explore what I have, or (B) they don't really understand what it is I'm offering. I've had my share of moments where I've supported someone's work and was glad I did because it showed me something I hadn't seen before, broadened my horizons to some extent. Sometimes, it's healthy to travel a road you normally wouldn't. You may find yourself with a whole new way of looking at things.
Until you've walked a block in our shoes, you'll never truly understand our difficult plight. We know this. Ultimately, what we hope is that you'll lend a hand when you can, in whatever way flows naturally from your heart. All support is appreciated in the end. At least, it is by me.
No comments:
Post a Comment